Be happy, live long!
Researchers at University College London have found that a feeling of contentment, excitement or happiness experienced during a normal day reduces the likelihood of death of elderly people by 35%. Moreover, this pattern persists even after adjusting the results taking into account factors such as a person's financial situation, as well as the state of his physical and mental health.
According to the head of the study, Dr. Andrew Steptoe, the existence of a relationship between the feeling of happiness during the day and the probability of death in the future is predictable, but the authors were surprised by the strength of the correlation revealed.
In earlier studies, experts tried to assess the relationship between life expectancy and happiness in general. This assessment was based on the participants' ability to characterize certain stages of their lives, which often brings results distorted by memory features. The authors of this study have chosen an alternative approach, the essence of which is to fix sensations at specific points in time.
They asked approximately 3,800 people between the ages of 52 and 79 to record their own feelings every day at four specific points in time. The observation lasted on average for 5 years.
As a result, all participants were divided into 3 groups: the happiest, the average and the least happy. With the exception of small differences in income, age, and smoking habits, the groups were generally comparable in terms of general health, employment and education levels, and ethnicity.
The analysis of the results showed that the mortality rate during the specified period for the groups of participants listed above as the intensity of happiness decreases was 3.6%, 4.6% and 7.3%, respectively.
After adjusting the data to take into account factors that could influence the final results, such as chronic diseases, physical activity level, alcohol consumption, tendency to depression and age, it turned out that the probability of death in the happiest group was 35% lower than in the least happy group.
The authors explain that the data they obtained indicate that the level of happiness or the nature of individual emotions is interrelated with the probability of death, regardless of parameters such as health status. They argue that the feeling of happiness at specific points in time may be in a causal relationship with the level of survival, or be a marker of basic biological, behavioral or temperament-determined factors. The results obtained indicate the exceptional importance of assessing the emotional state of elderly people, as well as the effectiveness of interventions aimed at improving it.
The article by Andrew Steptoe and Jane Wardle Positive affect measured using ecological momentary assessment and survival in older men and women is published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences.
Evgeniya Ryabtseva
Portal "Eternal youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru based on Medical News Today: Happiness Impacts On Lifespan Regardless Of Health Or Financial Issues.
03.11.2011